Artemis Fowl: the Dark Knight
by Sylvr
Summary: What if Artemis Sr. and Angeline were murdered in a mugging in Gotham's crime alley before the Fowl Star ever sailed to the bay of Kola? What if Artemis became batman--a much, much darker batman...R&R!
1. prologue: never never

_Disclaimer: I don't own Artemis Fowl or Batman._

_Prologue: Never Never_

_"Teach me." He said, his little boy's voice as hard as stone, his eyes as cold as ice and glinting with all the intelligence and determination of someone centuries older. "Teach me, Butler, so that it will never happen again."_

_The giant manservant looked down at his eight-year-old charge sadly. No child's eyes should have witnessed what those deep, glacial blue eyes had seen. The few traces of innocence once in the boy's face were gone as if they had never been. "Very well, Master Artemis." _

_Earlier--10:37 pm, Crime Alley, Gotham City.  
_

_"That was a fascinating movie, Father. Although, there were several major plot flaws. For example the part where--" Artemis said excitedly, swinging his hands and pulling his parent's hands along with him. He looked up into his father's smiling face as he was interrupted. The wealthy Wayne-Fowl family was on the last week of their annual six-month stay in Gotham City, Angeline Wayne's childhood home. As part of an agreement with her husband, they spent half of every year in Ireland, living in Fowl Manor, the ancestral residence of Artemis Fowl I, and the other half in Wayne Manor, on the borders of Gotham. Little Artemis Wayne-Fowl held dual citizenship.  
_

_"Come now, Arty, not everyone can be as intelligent as yourself. But perhaps we could compose a letter to the producers of _The Mask of Zorro _proposing a better plot for their next movie. Would you like that, Arty?" He asked._

_"That would be ideal, Father. Shall we begin once we arrive back at Fowl Manor next week?"_

_"I don't know, Arty, I may be busy. Your mother could probably help you though."_

_The eight-year-old turned his head to look at Angeline Wayne-Fowl, who smiled down at him. "Can we, Mother?"  
"Of course, Arty, we'll--"_

_"Hand over the money!"_

_Artemis Wayne-Fowl II immediately analyzed the appearance of the man who had just stepped out of Crime Alley's numerous shadows. Dirty, scowling, torn clothes, short hair, tattooed, and, most importantly, holding a gun aimed right at his father's head. It did not take a genius (though he was one) to put two and two together: thief. Of all times to give Butler a day off...The eight year automatically calculated trajectories for the path of the bullet, possible reaction time and defensive strategies. A thousand plans flickered through his mind in a second, but each was discarded. For all his massive intellect, there was nothing he could do. _

_Artemis Fowl Sr. stepped in front of his family, shielding them with his body. He began to speak in a calming tone to the armed man. He reached for his wallet, but the man panicked and pulled the trigger. It wasn't like the movies--no slow motion, no silent cry. And there was blood--_Blood--_more blood than Artemis had ever seen. Even as his father fell the thief stepped forwards and grabbed Angeline's necklace. '_No,' _thought Artemis distantly as the man shot his mother._ 'Those pearls were Father's gift to Mother for her birthday. You mustn't take them.' _As his mother's body toppled, landing parallel to her husband's, the necklace snapped and jewels tumbled over the cobblestones. Between the two corpses Artemis Fowl II stood, straight backed, eyes dry, all of his being focused on the criminal running down the alley. His mind cried to his body to run, to pursue, but his legs disobeyed._ 'Shock.' _he thought distantly. _

_The police arrived fifteen minutes later, sirens blaring, to find an eight-year-old boy standing between the bodies of his parents, his Armani suit stained with blood. His mind was locked in the memory of the robbery, re-playing it time and time again in perfect detail. The police managed to get him sitting down and found a phone number to call for his 'next of kin'. Butler arrived three minutes after the phone call was placed. He spent a full ten minutes with the bodies of his employers (none of the police dared ask such a large, obviously dangerous man to leave) before remembering that he still had duties to attend to. The manservant found Artemis huddled in a blanket against the wall, his eyes still staring into nothingness. _

_"Master Artemis." Butler said gently, placing one massive hand on the thin shoulder._

_"Butler." the boy responded, his soulless gaze shifting onto the man's face. Butler shuddered. There was something distinctly wrong with the emotionlessness of those icy blue eyes. "Butler—I couldn't do anything. I had no control._

_"Butler—I want to fight. I never want to be helpless again. _

_"Teach me." A cold fire sprang up in those flat eyes, a dark and bloody rage against the world. Never-NEVER would anyone harm another while he could stop it. And never again would he allow anyone close enough to hurt him. "Teach me, Butler, so that it will never happen again."_

_"Very well, Master Artemis." _

**A/N: I will not add another chapter to this story until I get at least 3 reviews, good or bad. Sorry! I'm just mean that way :) **


	2. happy birthday, merry christmas

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, not mine. Obviously. If they were, do you think I'd be writing fanfics?**

**A/N: Sweet! I got my requested three reviews within _three hours _of posting my first chapter! I LOOVES yous! So very happy! Um...if you like batman crossovers, Walter Kovacs wrote an amazing Harry Potter batman fic. It's on my favorites list. Go read it after you're done with this! And again with the three review rule! I don' t care if your review is total gibberish, I'll read it and it'll count! Thanks a bajillon! (Bajillon is my favorite number) 0o**

_Chapter One: Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas._

Happy Birthday.

Artemis Wayne-Fowl II sat in the dojo, meditating as he had every year on his birthday since his parents died four years ago. He would spend the first half of the twelve hours remembering his parents, but his mind always turned to their death in the end, and to the issue he tackled every year. The Mission.

What was The Mission?

He did not know. He felt in his gut that all he had done in the last four years and would do in the future was to some purpose: he simply did not know what. He knew he was to be some sort of protector; he knew he would work outside the law; he knew he would work alone. But he could not put his mission into words. Sometines he felt conflicted, almost as though he himself was a evil as the thief who had murdered his parents. Artemis knew he was a criminal, as he knew his father had been a criminal. But, he reassured himself, neither of them _hurt _people. Just stole. He allowed himself to drift deeper into his mind, following the swirls and eddies of his thoughts. Butler had taught him how to meditate when he was four, and he was an expert in the art. But he'd never broken through the final wall that protected the deepest corners of his mind where he harbored the truths he would never admit to himself. He tried, but it felt as though some small part of him was afraid of what he would find within himself and held him back. He felt, as he felt that he had a purpose, that that purpose could be found in those shadowed corners of his mind.

And so every year on his birthday, he gathered his mental strength and tried to break the barriers he himself had erected.

And every year he failed.

Frustrated, Artemis threw himself at the punching dummy on one side of the dojo. Ambushing it with expert blows, he worked out his anger on its padded sides. Finally, a good hour later, he subsided, lungs heaving. Normally an hour-long workout didn't bother him much, but today was a different matter. Today had always been different. His birthday seemed to herald change: on his first birthday, he'd been born, of course, and the world would never recover. On his fourth, he'd completed his first computer. On his fifth, he'd gotten an online high school diploma. On his ninth, he'd reaped the benefits of his first crime. On his eleventh he'd found the first mention of fairies online.

And his eighth birthday had marked the death of his family. He could only hope that this year would be better.

Happy Birthday.

* * *

Walking from the lodge back to the manor, Artemis turned his mind to his latest plan. Butler had intercommed the lodge-he'd gotten a bite on their online add requesting information on fairies. True to form-it was Artemis's birthday; something unusual needed to happen, or the world would stop spinning. Artemis had been surfing the internet a lot lately and he was in the first stages of a plan. Step one: kidnap a fairy. Step two: hold it for ransom. Why? Artemis needed more money. He needed more information. He needed to establish contact with the fairies. He needed...something to take his mind off The Mission and the silent, lonely Fowl manor at the crest of the hill.

* * *

"Be a good mud boy, and when I come back I'll buy you a lollipop." Captain Holly Short of LEPrecon snarled, cocking back her fist.

Artemis grinned viciously, catching her fist in his hand. "Sorry, Captain, but I'm afraid I'm a very bad boy, and I don't much care for lollipops."

Holly bared her teeth and gathered a ball of magic in the fist the twelve-year-old was gripping. "Let go, stupid." she snapped, releasing the energy. The Wayne-Fowl boy was hurled across the study, and though he tried to tuck and roll, his head slammed into a deck and he went out cold. "No" he tried to say as he passed out, "I have to help Butler." but it came out more like "Nihblarrghhh." and Holly ignored it as she ran from the room.

"Butler..." Artemis moaned, coming to. No fair. He hadn't actually _hurt_ the Captain, but she goes and knocks him out. Ow. He grabbed and hauled himself upright with the corner of the desk he'd hit his head on, turning to the security monitors. His gaze shot to the entrance hall video feed, and he moaned as he caught sight of his bodyguard's crumpled frame. Not Butler and Juliet, too. Butler and Juliet were...all he had left. The corners of Artemis's mouth tightened as Holly Short hurled herself onto the troll. The dark, bloody fire blazed to life in his eyes. _No._ Not Butler. Not Juliet. Not even Holly Short. He'd sworn 'never', and 'never' it would be. He whirled around, snatching an LEP helmet and an ax off the table, and used it to hack at the door frame. On the final blow, the ax embedded itself into the porous stone and Artemis didn't bother to pull it out. Charging forwards, he launched a spin kick and knocked down the door. He rode it all the way across the hall, then hurled himself towards the fight, jamming the helmet on his head.

Holly had just been grabbed by the troll when Artemis skidded into the hall. There was little a twelve-year-old should have been able to do, but Artemis was far from the average child. He'd been trained by Alfred Butler for four years and counting, as well as possibly the highest IQ in the history of man. Now he put that IQ to use. He couldn't shoot the troll, even if he'd been capable of handling a gun—Captain Short was too close. Attacking it one-on-one was obviously foolish—look at Butler. And he had no one to fall back on, except Juliet, who would be of no use, _mesmerized_ as she was. Holly would be as good as gone if he didn't do something—but what?

"The lights, Holly." A voice said over the helmet com. Lights? Artemis wondered. Of course-the creature's red eyes. It was nocturnal. Light could be damaging to it, and there must be some form of light on the helmet. He scanned the gnomish toolbar. There--tunnel high beams. Artemis darted up to the troll and tilted his head back a little. He flicked on the beams. The troll bellowed and tossed the elf across the room, next to Butler. Artemis didn't dare spend a glance on her—he had more pressing matters to deal with. Namely, the troll charging him. He rolled to the side, looking for a weapon. Judging from the circular wounds in the monster's forehead and chest, shooting it wasn't going to do much good, even if he had been willing to use a gun. Sliding across the tile floor, Artemis snatched a heavy broadsword off a bracket on the wall. "Perfect." he hissed, murder in his eyes.

In the ops booth, Foaly and Root shuddered. Fowl's visor was up and Holly's helmet cam was pointed in his general direction. His voice came in clearly over the com in his stolen helmet, and everyone in the booth felt the vampire grin in his voice. Less than a day and already the 'Artemis Fowl vampire smile' was legendary. And Foaly had a feeling that that fame was going to grow.

Artemis flipped through the options menu on the helmet. The speaker system, there. Turning the volume to max, he roared into the mic. Root and Foaly winced. That was _painful_. Even Butler twitched, though Artemis didn't notice it, and Juliet stuffed her fingers into her ears. The troll looked slightly cowed. It couldn't yell _nearly_ that loud. With more caution than normal, it edged towards the wiry, suited figure near the doors. Artemis waited. When it was a mere thirty feet away, he cocked back the sword and threw it at the troll. His aim was off; it hit the right shoulder, sinking in almost six inches. Still, lucky that he'd hit at all. Artemis's terrifying smile widened. Shrieking, the troll grabbed the blade, then made even more noise when it's hand was sliced open. Still, it managed to yank the broadsword out, and dropped it. It charged. Artemis, catching sight of something behind it, almost forgot to dodge. As the troll barreled past, he shoved off it, slipping across the floor to stand next to the armored Butler.

"Plan?" Butler asked.

"Lame it." Artemis responded. The manservant nodded. It wasn't the best plan, but it would work, and it was what he would have done anyways.

"Stay near Juliet. Get her out if you can. She needs protecting." Artemis almost protested, but he knew now was not the time. Running to Juliet, Artemis realized that the Captain may have need of protection as well. He took the teenager's hand and hauled her, protesting, around the back of the entry hall. Finding the fallen tapestry that Holly lay under, he seated Juliet in an alcove. Pulling back layers of cloth, he uncovered the elf. Blue sparks danced over her, targeting injuries. He tugged his helmet off.

"Captain Short." he said. He hesitated, then decided to do something rather unprofessional. "Holly. Wake up. We must leave, _now._ Butler can only keep the troll away from us for so long." He shook her shoulder gently. The recon officer moaned and twitched. Artemis sighed. With a little grunt, he hoisted her over his shoulder and took Juliet's hand. He took both of them to the top of the stairs and laid the elf back on the ground, where she began to wake. Artemis stood impassively on the stairs, watching his manservant decimate the troll. A muscle twitched in his face each time Butler fired his Sig Sauer, and blood-splattered pearls danced in his vision. He reached up unconsciously and fondled the large blue diamond dangling on a gold chain on his neck, but was otherwise still.

"Don't...kill it." he heard Holly moan behind him.

"Why not? It tried to kill us." He reasoned, but honestly, he didn't want any more blood shed. He'd relived enough memories already.

"You owe me, human."

Artemis considered. Not killing it would also spare him the mental pain of another gunshot. "Yes, I suppose so. Besides, it's Christmas, after all. San d'Class. Butler!"

"Yes, Master Artemis?" the manservant replied, a large pistol wedged under the troll's chin. "I'm a little busy at the moment, sir."

"I can see that Butler, but don't kill it, just send it back."

"Very well, Master Artemis." He pistolwhipped the monster over the head and hauled it to the entrance.

"Happy now?" Artemis asked the elf as his bodyguard threw the troll out the front door.

"Extremely." Holly replied sarcastically, getting to her feet. "This is the best thing that's happened to me all day." she considered a moment. "D'Arvit. This actually _is _the best thing that's happened to me all day."

Artemis glanced at her. "You should consider a different line of work."

"Shut up, mud boy."


	3. Nothing on this Earth

**A/N Artemis Fowl is not mine, nor is Batman. **

**This story takes place during the second book, but I'll be skipping the entire part of the book where Arty and crew are defeating the goblin rebellion. If you want me to, I'll add in a little oneshot in between this chapter and the next about what happens when Artemis finally catches Britva, otherwise I'll be going straight from teh end of this chapter to book three. And, yes, I know, I'm really skimming thru the books, but it would mostly be the same, and I hate rewriting what's already been written. SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO UPDATE, AND THANKS TO ALL WHO REVIEWED! I go to the bio of everyone who reviews/marks me as a fav/author alerts, and read a story. Unfortunately, my computer dies if I try to review, so I can't return the favor. A thousand apologies!**

"Master Artemis." Butler announced, entering the study. "We've got a lead."

"May I inquire as to what, exactly, it is that we have a lead on?" Artemis inquired archly. He loathed obtuseness.

"_Him._"

Him_. My parent's murderer_. Artemis thought, shocked. After so long, he had almost begun to think that they would never find him. That he would never be brought to justice.

"What have you got?" he asked, his voice not betraying his emotions only through long years of careful practice.

"He's somewhere in the Arctic Circle. Russia. Someone saw the add on one of the 'missing persons' sites and recognized him from your sketch. They sent a photo from the police files. It looks a little blurry. Apparently he's a member of the Russian Mayfia. They have a name: Britva." Artemis repeated the name under his breath as Butler continued. "The picture is cut from a security camera."

"Let me see it."

Butler handed him the paper. It was, indeed, blurry, and pixelated, as though it had been zoomed in from a very low-res video, but Artemis knew the face. He saw it every night in his dreams, framed by blood-splattered pearls, scowling above the black mouth of the gun barrel. Artemis's heart lurched, snarling like some hungry beast of the night.

"I'm coming for you, Britva." Artemis hissed, his most terrifying vampire smile spreading across his face like a bloodstain, and though usually unaffected by his Principal's fear-inspiring expressions, this was enough to send shivers down Butler's spine and turn his stomach. Artemis Wayne-Fowl II was out for revenge, and nothing on, in, above or under the world could stop him. Watch out, Britva.

* * *

"So, you'd like me to find out who this human contact is," said Artemis, "And more importantly, how much he knows."

As he spoke, Artemis's mind was racing. He could work this entire situation to his advantage. The People's powers would be valuable aces to hold in a hunt for his parent's murderer. The seeds of a plan began to sprout in his brain.

Root nodded reluctantly. "That's it. I can't risk putting LEPrecon agents aboveground. Who knows what technology the goblins have traded? I could be walking my agents into a trap. As humans, you both could blend in."

"Butler, blend in? Artemis almost smiled. "I doubt it."

"At least he doesn't have four legs and a tail." observed Foaly.

"Point taken. And there is no doubt that is no doubt that if any humans alive can track down your rogue trader, it's Butler and I. But..."

_Here we go, _thought Holly. _Artemis Fowl does nothing for nothing._

"But?" Root asked warily.

"I need transport to Russia," replied Artemis. "The Arctic Circle, to be precise. And I need help with the capture of a member of the Russian Mafia."

"The Arctic Circle is bad for us. Too much radiation. We can't shield, not to mention the cold." Root commented. "And we won't be assassinating anyone, Mafia or not."

"I've stated my terms, and I haven't time to negotiate. The man I intend to capture murdered both my parents, and I _will_ see him brought to justice. To justice, mind you, not vengeance. I'm going to turn him over to the courts to sentence and punish...with overwhelming evidence. If I were to avenge my parents and kill him, I would be no better than he is. I don't want anyone else dead." his steady voice weakened, softened. "My father...my father wouldn't want that."

For a moment, Holly's heart sympathized. He sounded so sincere. She could almost understand what it would be like for him. She'd lost a father as well, to natural causes...it wouldn't bear imagining what she would have done to her father's killer, had he been murdered. To show such restraint and determination was...admirable. But the way he said 'anyone else' wasn't good. The inflection in his voice seemed to indicate that the anyone else was not his parents, but himself. It made her feel that he had little regard for his personal welfare. Those who had no care for themselves made both the best and worst teammates. (Not that she wanted to be his teammate at all.) They never gave up, regardless of how badly things were going, but were dangerously reckless. And she also felt that he honestly didn't want anyone else to die, which was almost contradictory, given his willingness to steal things, kidnap and generally break the law. Elf instincts were rarely wrong, but this was Artemis Wayne-Fowl II, and no one really knew what was going on in his head. She would stay wary.

Root made an executive decision. "Deal."

* * *

"This isn't going to be easy," Butler admitted. "Artemis, I really hope you've got a plan."

"Of course." Artemis said with his usual cold calm. Britva's headquarters were a massive, mostly concrete warehouse in an abandoned part of town. His home was a penthouse in one of the wealthiest districts of the city, but all of his business was orchestrated from here, where his thugs wouldn't look out of place. Since it was built on concrete, dwarfs would be useless. There was little point in trying to be subtle, as well. All of them looked out of place, except possibly Butler, who would attract attention anyways because of his size. Children would never be able to get in, regardless if they actually were children, or just looked like it, as all of the fairies did, if in size only. So...

"We're going to nab him when he exits." Artemis announced into the throat-mike adhered just below his chin. "He has no reason to stay in there long, as he doesn't know we are here. Doubtless he will return to the penthouse Foaly found for us this evening. Captain Short, do the People require an invitation to enter a vehicle?"

"No, Fowl. We're good." Holly informed him from seventy feet overhead, where she was hovering, scouting the building. Root was flying on the opposite side, doing the same.

"Wonderful. This won't even be difficult. Captain Short and Root will find Britva's car and stow away inside it. When Britva leaves, you gas him, drop a sheet of cam-foil over him, and fly him out when his chauffeur opens the door. Understand? Butler and I will follow in the van. We'll slow down as we pass you when the car stops, and open the back door. You two will come in before anyone notices."

"Sounds reasonable." Root agreed. "Short and I are coming down."

Butler reached over and pulled the van door open, waiting until the two heat-haze telltales had moved inside before swinging it shut again. Holly and the commander turned their shields off, settling into the overlarge bucket seats that lined the interior of the vehicle. A collapsible table in the middle supported a holo-projector, which was currently displaying a schematic of the parking garage. The possible locations of Britva's car were outlined in glowing yellow, about a dozen total.

"If you work your way from here in--" Artemis began, when suddenly the hologram vanished. For several moments, the four beings in the van stared at the place where the holo had been, and at each other, "Captain Short." Artemis began again, "Is this sort of equipment failure normal?"

"No," Holly replied, mystified, "I've never heard of a brand new helmet breaking. This one's fresh off the line--my old one was replaced after the firefight with those goblins. And it couldn't be a manufacturing flaw. All LEP gear is heavily tested before they send it into the field."

"Which leaves only one reasonable explanation." concluded Artemis. "Someone tampered with your equipment. I would suggest you test your weapons and communications."

Root called Foaly through his helmet mic and got no response; Holly flicked a gun to the lowest setting and fired it at a wall. Nothing happened. She tried other weapons, and the Commander and Butler pumped a few triggers of their own, with similar results.

"D'arvit." Holly cussed.

"Indeed."

* * *

"Artemis, we can't do this now." Butler said gently, back in the fairy shuttleport, where they'd retreated to plan. Foaly's fateful message had come through, and the fairies were trying to plan some way to help. "Holly and Root need to get below ground, and we can't do this without support."

Artemis glared viscously into the glowcube, trying to get his raging emotions under control. "But we were so _close,_ Butler. After so long..."

Holly felt oddly sympathetic. _Careful, Short, you're going soft_. But he looked so _fragile._ Like all that was holding him together was this desperate rage, and sorrow, and well-disguised guilt. He looked, for a moment, like a broken thirteen-year-old boy who'd lost too much and hurt for too long, and her elfin nature screamed at her to heal him. But her more experienced mind knew that in this case, there was nothing magic could do, though perhaps a word might help.

"It's okay, Artemis." she said gently, earning a slight glance of surprise from Alfred Butler. "It's always darkest before dawn."

"What dawn?" he responded bleakly, though Holly could detect a glint of grim humor in his dark eyes, as well as some startlement at her camaraderie. She felt a hint of satisfaction as he continued. "We're in the Arctic, remember?"


End file.
